January 2008 Archives

Come and See!
John 1:29-42 (NRSV)
January 20, 2008
Rev. Nancy Pfaltzgraf
Have you ever been so excited about a wonderful new restaurant that you simply have to tell your family,
friends or co-workers about it? Have you ever watched a really good movie and afterwards thought, "My friend
needs to see this movie. She would really enjoy it?" Have you ever been so intrigued by what you are reading that
every chance you get you share insights you are learning and things you are experiencing? Have you ever enjoyed
something so much that you wanted to experience it again and take your friends with you so they can share the
experience? Have you every received an e-mail that was so inspiring or funny or contained such important
information that you actually wanted to pass it along to family and friends? I know I have and I know some of you
have as well because I've been on the receiving end of your sharing. It's natural to share experiences that are
meaningful to us with those we care about isn't it?
That's exactly what we see happening in the portion of John's gospel that Dwight read for us today. John the
Baptist is talking to some of his own disciples -his friends and co-workers- when he sees Jesus walking toward
them. Perhaps he had just been telling them about what he experienced when he baptized Jesus or sharing
insights he learned from the encounter. So when he saw Jesus he said, "Look, there he is, the one I was talking
about; the one who will bring freedom, acceptance and belonging in place of fear, rejection and oppression. I have
seen it. I have experienced it! I know it's true!"

Marked by Love
Matthew 3:13-17
Feast of the Baptism of Jesus
January 13, 2008
Rev. Nancy Pfaltzgraf
Today is the first Sunday after Epiphany, a day that many traditions celebrate as the Feast of the Baptism
of Jesus, a day to celebrate the sacrament of baptism, a day when we are invited to stop, remember our
baptism and reflect on it's meaning in our lives.
There once was a little girl who was caught in some misdeed. When the her mother confronted her with
her wrong-doing and threatened to punish her, she drew herself up to her full four-foot height and said proudly,
"You can't touch me, I'm baptized!"
Now that was indeed a manipulative use of what it means to be baptized, but at least the child had some
sense of the importance of baptism.
As some of you may know, I was raised in the Lutheran church and my first trip after coming home from
the hospital was to church to be baptized. Never-the-less baptism was not something I thought much about, at
least not until my daughter was born. For you see, a few months before her birth, I had become a member of a
Disciples of Christ congregation. I loved the church and felt the Spirit there in ways I had never before
experienced. There was just one problem. They didn't baptize babies! And I had somehow acquired the notion
that if my baby were to die without having been baptized, she would go to hell.
Several long conversations with our pastor helped me gain a new understanding of something the Disciples
call the Rite of Infant Blessing and Parent Dedication. And I finally agreed to participate in that ritual. Neverthe-
less, in my heart of hearts, I harbored the secret thought that if my child were ever seriously ill, I would
find a Lutheran Pastor to baptize her.
When I was in seminary, however, I began to realize that my experience and understanding of God's love
and grace and my beliefs about baptism were totally incompatible. Either the love and grace of God were not
unconditional or baptism was about something other than being saved from eternal damnation. So it was time
to examine what baptism might truly mean.
When Jesus went to John to be baptized, Matthew tells us that John was unwilling to baptize him because
John understood his baptism to be about repentance -that is turning one's life around and living in harmony
with God. And John already saw Jesus living that way. But Jesus persisted and John relented and when he
came up out of the water, Jesus experienced the presence of God in a new and powerful way and a voice from
heaven said, "This is my Son, the Beloved, with whom I am well pleased," or as the Message translation puts it
"This is my Son, chosen and marked by my love, delight of my life." Now, I think it's important to notice that
when Jesus hears this affirmation, he has yet to perform one miracle, heal one person or transform one life. In
fact, as far as we know, at this point, Jesus is not even all that sure what it was he was supposed to be doing.
Yet these words affirmed what was already true and acknowledged what was already in the heart and
mind of God, that Jesus was sent to be an instrument of Divine Love, an agent of Divine Compassion, one who
establishes God's Shalom. This act of baptism made visible what was already true, Jesus was marked by God's
love and empowered to live into the fullness of that love.
Our baptism likewise makes visible what has been true from the beginning; we too are marked by God's
love. Whether or not we see a dove descending or hear an audible voice from heaven, in our baptism, God
declares that, like Jesus, we are God's sons and daughters, with whom God is well-pleased, for whom God has
a special mission and in whom God's Spirit is a work.
On her first day teaching at an inner-city High School Louanne Johnson told her students that she would
give her best to them and she expected the best from them. "In my class," she said, "each one of you starts out
with an 'A.' Whether or not you keep that 'A' is up to you." Johnson inspired her students to achieve more than
anyone thought possible for them. Under her guidance, many of them graduated and went on to successful
jobs. The movie Dangerous Minds chronicles her success.
In a real and powerful way baptism declares a kind of 'Dangerous Gospel.' On the day of our baptism the
Creator of the Universe says to each of us, "You have an automatic spiritual 'A' -that is, you are accepted,
acclaimed, acknowledged, applauded and affirmed. You are marked by my love, born from my heart and I have
a purpose and a plan for you. Live in the power of my love, be a sign of my shalom, open your heart to my
O:\Sermons\sermons 2008\01-13-08 matt 3-13-17.doc Last printed 1/23/2008 10:51:00 AM - 2 -
compassion and you will live into the fullness of what is already true and become all that I have created you to
be."
In the face of so many voices that tell us how we have to live to be accepted, what we have to know to be
affirmed, they way we have to be in order to be acknowledged, the successes we have to achieve to be
applauded and all that we have to do to be acclaimed, this is radical good news. And if we will but trust it and
accept it, it will change how we think, what we do, how we relate to one another and the world. For if we will
but open our hearts minds and spirits, we will see that the Spirit is at work in our lives, guiding us, nudging us,
inspiring us, challenging us to grow into the grade we have already been given.
Today as we remember our baptism, let us remember who we are, sons and daughters of God marked by
Love! Each day of our lives as we feel the warm water of a morning shower or taste the goodness of a cold
glass of water let us remember who we are, daughters and sons of God marked by Love! When we feel the
gentle touch of a warm spring rain or see the pounding force of a summer thunderstorm, let us remember who
we are, sons and daughters of God marked by Love! And remembering, let us open our minds, our hearts and
our spirits to the power of Divine Love alive in us so that in all we do we live into the grade we have been given
and the mark we have received. Amen.

Following a Star!
Matthew 2:1-12
Epiphany Sunday - January 6, 2008
Rev. Nancy Pfaltzgraf
I'd like to introduce you to a new friend of mine. Her name is Natalie; she's the GPS
unit that Tom gave me about the middle of December as an early Christmas gift. When I
first received Natalie, in order to learn how she worked, I programmed several of my
frequently used and well-known destinations into her. One of the things I discovered in the
process is that the way I normally drive between home and church is NOT the way Natalie
wants me to go. So for the first mile or two, when I ignore one of her directions, Natalie
makes suggestions like "In 300 feet, please make a U-turn, if possible," or "In .1 miles, turn
left,"; each instruction designed to get me back on the route that she thinks is the best.
Finally, when I'm far enough off course that it's impractical to follow her preferred route,
she completely recalculates where I am and sends me there by another way.
Another thing I discovered is that on very bright sunny days it's hard to see Natalie's
screen and I have to rely more on her verbal directions. But if I have the radio too loud,
then I'm in danger of missing even those bits of guidance about where I should be turning.
One day, as I was ignoring yet another set of Natalie's instructions the thought hit me,
"I wonder what I might be missing by not following her directions?" So the next morning
when heading to my chiropractor, I decided to follow her lead and see where she took me. I
truly wondered about the wisdom of that decision as she had me turn on what seemed to be
a very narrow, very obscure street. But in short order I realized that she had found a
delightful, very lightly traveled short-cut and I arrived early for my appointment!